safety wiring

[transman]

I'm working on safety wiring an rc-51 and the bits I have must suck because it takes forever to go through one bolt. It's borderline impossible.:banghead: Lowes was closed so I'm using some "titanium" bit from wal-mart. Anybody have any suggestions. I would kill to buy pre-drilled bolts. Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Emerson]

use the Dewalt bits they are about $3 each. they cut steel like butter. it will save you time, a lot of cursing, and a few headaches

 

[transman]

Thanks for the suggestion. Will get some on the way home today.

 

[rk97]

also look into a drilling jig.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/SAFETY-WIRE-BLOCK-RACING-AIRCRAFT-ETC_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ107063QQihZ002QQitemZ120286426420QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW

makes sure you go straight, and helps keep the bit from breaking off due to bending.

 

[Joe Vital]

lubrication, a steady hand, patience, and sharp bits. the ones emerson suggested are among best ones i have tried.

i purchased a small drill press just for the job. there are few jigs out there to hold the hardware but in my experience they don't work well on most of the kind of hardware used on japanese bikes.

 

[Quantum_Ape]

I also recommend the Dewalt bits. I have a few others that are high quality but i like the Dewalts too. I use a drill press with a vice bolted to the drills table. Then i take two blocks of wood and crush the bolt into them to keep it steady. Lots of oil while drilling. Sounds counter intuitive, but it cuts down on the friction and stops the bit from overheating and keeps it sharp.

Good luck!

 

[Brian Laws]

Get cobalt bits. They are a bit stronger and stay sharp longer. Also, take it slow, especially as you are about to punch through the back side. That is where I tend to break bits most often.

 

[transman]

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I got some of the cobalt dewalt bits and they seem to work pretty well. I'm a mechanic by trade so I'm used to machining/ drilling stuff but when I ran into everything being stainless I didn't realize how much of a pain drilling would be.

 

[STACK]

I just drilled my whole front end with one dewalt drill bit and I was very impressed. I also used a drill press though.

 

[Surfinglbi23]

Dewalt bits are good ... any high quality metal bit will work, keep the area cool using some lubrication will also help keep the bit from drying up, getting hot and not working so well.

 

[sternsi]

don't forget lube. The bits will get hot, and that is one of the mail reasons they break. You can use something simple like WD-40 to keeps the bits cool. I also recommend either the dewalt, or the cobalt bits. I did my whole bike on 4 dewalt bits.

 

[Meat]

sternsi.....MY GOD that is an AWESOME avatar!!

 

[jimgl3]

Ed Bargy sells pre-drilled kits... since you mentioned the desire

 

[Meat]

Ed's kit is missing a TON of stuff if he wants to safety wire his bike for competition. I think Ed's kit is just to meet the minimum requirements for his school, but I am only guessing.

 

[jimgl3]

that figures! oh well

 

[transman]

Yeah, I got it done the other day. My dad has a 55 gal. drum of machining oil so no problems there. Thanks for the replys. +1 on the avatar.

 

[Handicapped Racer]

Brian Laws;3719 wrote: Get cobalt bits. They are a bit stronger and stay sharp longer. Also, take it slow, especially as you are about to punch through the back side. That is where I tend to break bits most often.

:agree::congrats: